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Friday, January 13, 2012

I realize that time is in short supply for those of us with kids, but I want to pass along this message because I think it's important. If it doesn't work for you, please consider forwarding it to someone who can serve as a mentor. There's also donation information at the bottom, if you'd like to support them that way.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bay Area (BBBSBA) is launching an aggressive campaign to recruit 75 new mentors and initiate a new call for donations to support mentoring matches in 2012. The kick-off of the campaign coincides with National Mentoring Month and is designed to immediately begin serving children waiting for mentoring support.

THE NEED

BBBSBA serves children who are at risk -- 85 percent live in low income housing, 21 percent are in foster care and 19 percent have at least one parent in prison. There are currently 750 at risk children on the BBBSBA waiting list, 80 percent of which are boys. Even with these many wait-listed youth, BBBSBA currently has fewer than 20 volunteers applying to become mentors in cities like Oakland and San Jose. Wait listed children by county, include:

227 in Alameda

152 in Contra Costa

109 in San Francisco

111 in San Mateo

153 in Santa Clara

THE IMPACT

BBBSBA’s mentoring services have a measurable impact on at-risk youth. Recent studies show youths matched with a Big Brother or Big Sister for 18 months or more are:

·46 percent less likely to begin using drugs

·50 percent less likely to skip class

·32 percent less likely to use violence than non-mentored peers

To make a difference, volunteer to be a mentor and support local children who need this funding, please visit then online or Facebook. You can donate via mobile phone by texting the word “DONATE” to 40579 to make a $5 donation to Big Brothers Big Sisters.